Hose-guard



S. A. WOODRUFF.

HOSE GUARD.v

APPLICATION HLED N0v.12. 1919.

1,354,934, Patented Oct. 5,1920.

INVENTOR A TTOR/VEYS UNITED s'rArgs mean A. woonnu rr, or SEATTLE, wasnmeron.

HOSE-GUARD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 5, 1920.

Application iiled November 12, 1919. Serial No. 387,575.

To all'wlzomitma concern:

Be it known t at I SAMUEL A. WOOD- nm, a citizen of the llnited States, and a resident of Seattle, in the county of King and State of Washin ton, have invented a new and Improved ose-Guard, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to improvements in hose guards, an object of the invention being to provide a uard which can be quickly applied to the eg or ankle and inserted within the shoe at the heel portion thereof so as to protect the hose from a brush or cloth which is used in polishin the shoes.

A further object is to provi e a device of the character stated, which can be manufactured and sold at a reasonably low price, and which will most efiiciently perform the functions for which it is intended.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, and combinations and ar rangements of parts, as will be more fully hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings- Figure 1 is a plan view of the blank from which my improved device is made;

Fig. 2 is a view'in rear elevation; and

Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation illustratin the device in operative position.

My improved hose guard comprises a sheet of metal, celluloid, or any other suitable material, curved transversely and longitudinally at its center to correspond to the shape of a leg at the ankle, as indicated by the reference numeral 1. A pair of outwardly and downwardl flared wings 2, 2, project from the curve portion 1 and are adapted to be positioned a ainst the sides of the foot inside of a shoe. 'l he extreme lower endof the curved portion 1 is outwardly or rearwardly flared, as shown at 3, to fit over the heel of the foot.

A pair of upwardly and outwardly flared wings 4, 4, are also integral with the curved portion 1 and are adapted to snugly fit or clamp the leg above the ankle. At the upper end of the curved portion 1 and between the wings 4, 4, a tongue 5 is provided and this tongue is bent outwardly and downwardly forming a handle or finger hold and also constitutin a support for the shoestrings when the atter are untied and positioned around the leg of the wearer out of the way portion 6 at its free end an 'tion in use. they are forced upwardly into the space 7 precise during the shoe shining operation. To facilltate the su port of the shoestrings the tongue 5 has n outwardly (projecting shelf this shelf portion also constitutes a finger hold to facilitate the manipulation of the guard. The

guard is preferably of an elastic or spring material so that it will retain itself in posi- To support the shoe strings under the tongue 5.

In shining shoes, particularly low shoes, 1t 1s customary for the bootblack to untie the bowknot and fasten the shoe strings around the back of the ankle to keep them out of the way of the shoe polish and by shaping the tongue as above described, the ends of the shoe strings can be forced into the space 7 and be retained in this space so as to prevent the necessity of tying the shoe strings around the back of the ankle.

Fig. 3 shows the device in operation and it will be noted from this View that the guard projects into the shoe and also an appreciable distance above the top of the shoe so as to cover the rear portion of the hose and prevent blacking or polish from staining the hose when it is applied to the rear portion of the shoe either by means of a brush or by the ordinary polishing rag. The device can be easily and quickly placed in position and removed when the shoe shining operation is ended.

The device is, of course, of sufficient elasticity to fit any ordinary foot and ankle and will clamp the foot and ankle with sufficient force to maintain itself in position without discomfort to the user.

Various slight changes may be made in the general form and arrangement of parts described without departing from the invention, and hence I do not limit myself to the details set forth but consider myself at liberty to make such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A hose guard composed of elastic material and having a transversely and longitudinally curved intermediate portion, upwardly and outwardly flared wings integral with the intermediate portion, and a rearwardly projecting tongue at the upper end of the intermediate portion, said tongue at its lower portion being in such proximity to said intermediate portion-that shoe strings may be forced between said tongue and intermediate portion and confined therebetween.

2. A hose guard, having a longitudinally and transversely curved intermediate portion with an outwardly flared lower end of said intermediate portion, downwardly and outwardly flared wlngs integral with the lower portion of the intermediate portion, upwardly and outwardly flared wings in- 10 tegral with the upper portion of the intermediate portion, and an integral elastic tongue tprojecting outwardly and downwardly min the upper end of the intermediate portion, said tongue comprising a handle at its lower end being in such proximity to said intermediate portion that shoe strings may be forced between said elastic tongue and intermediate portion and con.- fined in the space formed therebetween.

SAMUEL A. WOODRUFF. 

